The first way most people start their internet session is beginning with a search, something that spammers and swindlers know and use as an opportunity to exploit you during your web time. These defrauders are using your excessive keyword searches to push their content to the top of the page and closer to your eye line. Though some search engines thwart such fraudulent activity from their search results, many dirty sites still make their way atop of the list.

In its 2012 security report, Web security firm Blue Coat Systems concluded that search engines topped the list of spam entry points even before e-mail. Here are some ways to avoid spammers who can infect computers with malware as well as simply stopping the nuisance of spam.

First, one must learn to spot spam and exercise smarter searching. Although this may not always help, the user must look before they click. Just because the link is at the top of the page does not mean it will lead to the best results.

Secondly, some searches attract spammers more than others. For example, questions regarding credit reports are a top target. There are only three national credit rating agencies and any third party agency could be risky. This goes the same for Travel sites. Sites without legitimate user reviews can give you wrong tips or ideas about the hotel that is being looked at. It is better to stay with well trusted sites such as Tripadvisor.com or Travelocity.com.

Lastly, a great way to avoid spam is to seek out custom engines. You can use Google Books when looking for results on “To Kill a Mocking Bird,” this will most likely not end in spammers trying to sell you apparel related to this book. Likewise, using topic related search engines such as scirus.com will give users only wanting science related material the right results minus all the spam.